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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Some good news below from my friend Valerie Huber of Ascend
(formerly the National Abstinence Education Association). The majority GOP Congress has increased the amount of funding allocated to sexual risk avoidance (SRA) sex education.

However, a huge federal funding
gap remains between programs that teach teens how to save sex while protecting their hearts and programs that teach teens how to have sex while protecting their sexual organs. The sexual risk avoidance strategies regarding teen sex parallel similar strategies for risky behaviors such as smoking and substance abuse.

The House has released the long-awaited Omnibus spending
bill for Fiscal Year 2016. Tucked within the many pages of the bill are several
policy changes in the nation’s sex education priorities. Three improvements
have a direct impact on Sexual Risk Avoidance (SRA) education, funded through
the annual appropriations process:

1.Funding.
Funding for Sexual Risk Avoidance (SRA) education is doubled from $5 million to
$10 million. The disparity is still great between SRA and so-called
“comprehensive” sex education (or more accurately Sexual Risk Reduction [SRR]
education), but this year’s omnibus is a step in the right direction. SRR
education received funding at $90 million.

2.New
Language. Legislative language governing the SRA program ensures that students
will receive clear and accurate information and skills to avoid sexual
risk.The new language is taken from the
Healthy Relationships Act, introduced in the House by Rep. Randy Hultgren and
Rep. Dan Lipinski, and in the Senate by Sen. Lindsey Graham.

3.New Name.
The term “sexual risk avoidance” more clearly describes the optimal health
priorities of our programs. Congress replaced the term “abstinence education”
for “sexual risk avoidance” to reflect the overriding health benefits teens
experience when they forgo sexual activity. Consistent with how the public
health community addresses other youth risks, the sexual risk avoidance
approach offers a well-defined and consistent emphasis on information and
skills that help youth avoid all sexual risk.

With the expected and quick passage of the Omnibus,
these important improvements to federal sex education policy set a new
precedent for teen health.

“We are encouraged that Congress listened to the
majority of Americans* who say that pregnancy-prevention-only programs are not
enough for our youth.They say that
youth deserve all the skills to help them thrive – skills that are a part of
SRA programs,” declared Valerie Huber, President/CEO of Ascend.

“We are encouraged that Congress is committed to
reinforcing and amplifying the good decisions of the majority of youth. Most
teens have not had sex – and that percentage has increased more than 15% over
the past 20 years.** Finally, more sex education classes will help youth build
healthy relationships, avoid all the consequences of teen sex, and ascend to
brighter and healthier futures,” she continued.

“The legislative changes are important and the
increased funding is one step closer to parity between SRA and SRR programs, a
continuing goal for Ascend.”

Ascend applauds Congress for making important
improvements to sex education funding and policy. The future of our youth
trumps politics. The FY 2016 Omnibus sets a good precedent for that future.

*About 70% of Americans say students should learn how
to avoid all the consequences of sex, rather than merely receive a pregnancy
prevention message, according to the July 2015 Americans Speak Out Survey.
Research conducted by the Barna Group.

** The CDC reveals more than a 15% decrease in the
percent of teens who have had sex from 1991-2013. Click here to see trends and
further information.

Ascend (formerly the National Abstinence Education
Association) champions youth to make healthy decisions in relationships and
life by promoting well being through a primary prevention strategy, and as a
national membership and advocacy organization that serves, leads, represents
and equips the Sexual Risk Avoidance field.

China’s New “Two-Child Policy” & the Continuation of Massive Crimes
Against Women and Children

Thursday, December 3, 2015

1o:00 a.m. to 12 p.m.

HVC 210, Capitol Visitors Center

After
35 years of brutal enforcement of the one-child policy, the Chinese Communist
Party announced in late October that a universal two-child policy will be
adopted, allowing all married Chinese couples to have two children.

This hearing will examine
the potential demographic, economic, and social implications associated with
China’s new “Two-Child Policy” and seek recommendations on how the
international community can assist China to address them.

Click
here to download a copy of the
Commission's full 2015 Annual Report.

The
Congressional-Executive Commission on China, established by the U.S.-China
Relations Act of 2000 as China prepared to enter the World Trade Organization,
is mandated by law to monitor human rights, including worker rights, and the
development of the rule of law in China. The Commission by mandate also
maintains a database of information on political prisoners in China—individuals
who have been imprisoned by the Chinese government for exercising their civil
and political rights under China's Constitution and laws or under China's
international human rights obligations. All of the Commission's reporting and
its Political Prisoner Database are available to the public online via the
Commission's Web site, http://www.cecc.gov

Friday, November 6, 2015

Grateful for these words from Family Research Council President Tony Perkins'Washington Update:

Based on his new book Faith Steps:Moving toward God through Personal Choice and Public Policy,
Jonathan Imbody’s lecture explained the importance of Christian participation
in the public square. As Jonathan asked, "Why should people who know the
difference between good and evil leave government in the hands of those
who do not?" Jonathan made a point of emphasizing that Christians must
engage culture in terms the culture understands, using the Apostle
Paul's message to the Greek philosophers on Mars Hill (Acts 17) as a
solid biblical example. "God creates every human being in His image,"
writes Jonathan. "From a public policy standpoint, this means that we
honor and protect human life at every stage of development, especially
when individuals cannot protect themselves. From a personal standpoint,
it means that as God's image-bearers, we need to walk consistently with
His principles if the image we reflect is to help others better
understand Him." Be sure to watch the lecture and learn why your
involvement in public life is so vital, and how we can make arguments
persuasively to our needy culture.

Marriage and sexuality, religious freedom, abortion,
assisted suicide, stem cell research and human trafficking: The stands we take
and the choices we make on such vital issues, as individuals and as a nation,
matter now and for eternity. Faith Steps encourages and equips people of faith
to winsomely engage friends and the culture on critical matters --not as
partisans but as ambassadors.

Decisively rejecting the stifling notion that Christians
should remain mute on controversial social issues and shun the political arena,
Faith Steps reveals how courageous and compassionate engagement can help our
neighbors and transform culture.

Drawing on Jonathan Imbody's many years of experience in
Washington, DC in government relations and communications, the book provides
practical, in-the-trenches communications strategies to address and engage
individuals and society on the most controversial and consequential issues of
our day. Join FRC and Jonathan Imbody as he comes to discuss this important
book.

A veteran writer of over 30 years, Jonathan Imbody has
published over 100 commentaries in various national publications. He has also
written numerous magazine articles, marketing materials and educational
curricula. Jonathan's writing focuses on health-related ethical issues
including conscience protections for healthcare professionals, healthcare
reform, human trafficking, abortion, assisted suicide, stem cell research, the
role of faith in health, international health, abstinence and HIV/AIDS. His
on-site research on euthanasia in the Netherlands formed the basis for the
"No Mercy" video and a presentation at an international conference in
The Hague.

Currently, he serves as Vice President for Government
Relations and director of the Christian Medical Association's Washington
Office. As CMA's liaison with the federal government, he has participated in
nearly 30 White House meetings and events and makes more than 200 personal
contacts with Congressional leaders and government officials each year.
Jonathan has testified in the U.S. Senate on euthanasia and assisted suicide.
He received his bachelor's and master's degree from Penn State and earned a
certificate in biblical and theological studies from the Alliance Theological
Seminary in New York. Jonathan and his wife Amy have four grown children and
live in Ashburn, Virginia.